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Sen. Chuck Schumer told reporters in the Capitol that the deal was finalized late Friday night, with a handshake at 10:30 p.m.
AP Photo

“Some who are progressives, they feel that this bill doesn’t go far enough... But this bill, this bill, will do so many good things for so many people,” Reid said. “This broken system cannot continue, and it will not continue. All Senate Democrats stand shoulder to shoulder with President Obama and the American people who know inaction is not an option.”

If the Senate passes the bill next week as expected, it will go into a conference with Democrat House leaders – whose bill is far more liberal than the Senate version. The House bill includes a government-run health care option and a different mechanism to pay the nearly $900 billion cost, and that could cause problems when the two houses try to merge their bills – forcing Obama ultimately into the role of conciliator between the two sets of Democrats.

The stakes for Obama in this debate are high, as Democrats worried that if the Senate fell short, the president would get criticized for spending nearly his whole first year trying to get a health bill through and coming up empty. In fact, many Democrats who don’t fully support the bill seemed to have become persuaded in recent weeks of the White House’s main argument – it’s far more politically damaging to pass nothing, than to pass something that polls show many American don’t support.

But even getting to this compromise wasn’t easy. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y) told reporters in the Capitol that the deal was finalized late Friday night, with a handshake at 10:30 p.m. The negotiations, which included Reid, Schumer, Nelson and White House officials Pete Rouse and Jim Messina, ended after a marathon 13 hours of talks.

“There were many times they thought they couldn't come to an agreement,” Schumer said. “We are now for the first time really feeling good. I think every Democrat realized whatever his or her views, we had to get this done.”

But Schumer made clear the negotiations, which centered on abortion funding and Medicaid expansion were touch and go. “There were several times in that room where we thought we wouldn't have a deal," he said.

And in fact, Nelson left the Capitol about 10 p.m. Friday telling reporters there wasn’t a deal – at least not a final one – and that all sides had to sleep on it.

The compromise gets Reid to the 60 votes he needs to move ahead with health reform, but it’s going to be a long weekend. After the first vote at 1 a.m. Monday, the final vote would take place at 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

The bill would call for the creation of national health insurance exchange that would allow people to shop for insurance, subsidies to help low-income people buy insurance and an expansion of Medicaid. It does not include the government-run health insurance option that Nelson and other moderates objected to – and its absence has drawn fire from liberal critics who say the bill doesn’t amount to true reform.

Conservative also attacked the bill, saying the lack of details — with the bill language released less than 72 hours before senators are scheduled to cast the first key vote — showed Democrats were rushing the bill for political purposes.

"The majority leader has signaled that he is going to unveil the most significant piece of domestic legislation in memory, and his goal after introducing that measure in the morning presumably would be, of course, to vote on it some 36 hours after that,” said McConnell, the Republican leader.

When the dust settles and you begin to look historically at how far we have come to health care progress with this bill that will pass, it's a good thing, despite there being no public option or medicare buy in. Understated by the media and the uneducated Palinized and Pee Wee Herman act a like, look a like Glenn Beck, there are many reforms in this bill. Before you republicants start hee hawing and celebrating with a gigantic hog and grits feast, understand that time will prove that passing this bill may not have been the overwhelming popular thing to do, but it wound up being necessary.

Come on - y'all knew this was going to happen. He folded like the cheap suit he is. Cornhuskers, remember his feigned conservatism and looking out for the unborn. Further, all the stuff that was taken out of the senate & house bills to get votes will be put back in during conference, and all the stuff that was put in to get votes will be taken out. And, when the bill comes out of conference, no amendments can be made without it going back into conference, which won't happen, it will be voted on by both houses, approved and sent to the prez.

I wonder what they have cooked up for us common folk this time?? I hope it doesn't MANDATE US to get insurance and let the insurance companies do the same ole same ole...we'll see...as much money that has been thrown at these so-called politicians it doesn't look good !!

If any of this crap becomes law, it will be reversed as soon as the Republicans take over. None of it goes into effect until 2014, so it will give those who still have brains more than enough time to eliminate all of it.

The good news is that now the Democrats own this bill completely, and they will be eliminated, too.

These Democrats can't seal their fate fast enough. We've got another year of this before the majority voters who oppose most of their reckless plans kick them out. January should mark a major Republican offensive against them as well as clarifying who is or who is not on the side of Americans fed up with Republican leaders that play along to get along (needed as we head into the 2012 election).